The Honorable Asp
by Mikena
Summary: A new law is being forced through by the Dark Lord, and the only person who can help our dear Hermione is a certain Snarky Professor. But what happens when secrets are revealed? Who is really saving who? Marriage Law fic. Mature rating for language and future themes. AU
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N : So, I know marriage law has been done so many times before, but I've never attempted one as of yet, so I'm a bit excited on this. Please note that I don't have a beta as of now, so this is in its raw form. I apologize in advance for any mistakes! Please R &R, though please be respectful. If you don't like HGSS, or are just complaining about marriage law fics, you don't have to read it. But if you want to give me some constructive criticism on the storyline, that's fine. Thank you! And as always, I do not own these lovely characters, that honor belongs to the wonderful JKR, I just like play with them, for my own amusement. xD **_

"Well, my boy, this isn't going to bode well with you," Dumbledore said, sighing deep, trying to find the right words. "It looks as though the Ministry is going through with the Marriage Act, with the pregnancy clause. I have tried to dissuade them, telling them that this will bring us back to the dark ages. But it looks like Tom's influence has wormed its way to Fudge." He looked at the younger man before him, sans his usual twinkle. He knew what Voldemort has planned with this new law, it always has to do with getting to Harry. But he knew this time, ever since the news came out that Hermione was indeed 17, because of the time-turner, it would directly involve her, as the muggle-born friend of Harry's.

The man sitting in front of the desk looked back at the headmaster with worn eyes, "Miss Granger is in danger. You know the Dark Lord will want her married to a loyal Death Eater, and make her preoccupied as a broodmare. Last I heard, he was working on getting Draco to marry her. I know he's been on the fence of this whole war, and I think that the Dark Lord knows as well, which means that if not Draco, then," He sighed, not wanting to think the possibility of it, "Miss Granger will marry Fenrir Greyback." He said with a disgust. Such a waste of such a brilliant mind. "We can't hide her away, and unless she marries someone quickly, someone who can protect her, and who can protect themselves as well, this may lose us the war. If she's married before the law comes out, then she won't be succumbed to the pregnancy clause, as long as there is evidence of the relationship being genuine." He said, not seeing a way out of this whole mess.

But the headmaster then looked at him with thoughtful eyes, eyes with that knowing twinkle, "And you know no one who can do that, Severus? No one at all?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

Severus looked up at Albus, "Who—," Then it clicked as he saw the way Albus was looking at him, "No, no Albus, absolutely not! I am not marrying my student! Isn't that against school regulation anyway?" He asked desperately, not even knowing if that was a thing.

"Ah, my dear boy, as long as the headmaster approves said union, and that the student in question is given a separate tutor for the class the spouse teaches, then it could be regulated. Plus, you can teach her to defend herself, and let her finish her education." He said, eyes twinkling madly. Watching his potions professor turn an impressive shade of red and purple, (Ah! Rurple! A new color!) He thought about how certain he was that they could be very happy together…eventually at least. He knew they were both hard headed, and stubborn, but he also knew that both of them were loyal and could learn to love each other.

"Albus," Severus said as calmly as he could, "Did you not hear me? There needs to be evidence of a genuine relationship, especially this close to the law coming out! There is no way we can make up a realistic relationship between her and me in a matter of days! There has to be someone else. Anyone else! What about one of the Weasley boys? Someone closer to her age would be easier to mask, not her professor who is old enough to be her fucking father!" He thought desperately, even though he knew deep down that they couldn't possibly hold their own against death eaters. "Just talk it over with her first, will you? Before you decide? Maybe her brain can come up with some other answers to this fucking problem." At that he stood, and stormed out the door.

Albus sighed, knowing that he was right about he needed to talk with Hermione first. But he knew that this was the best course to go, and he was sure he can get her to see reason as well. She had a rather remarkably logical mind.

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Severus fumed his way down to the dungeons, robes billowed angrily behind him. How could Albus actually think that he should marry that little chit of a girl? He was old enough to be her father, for Merlin's sake! Growling the password to his quarters, he swept in, headed straight for his desk and pulled out his firewhiskey and poured himself a glass and collapsed into his armchair. He glared at the fire roaring in his fireplace, while taking a deep slug from his glass. He sighed, placing the glass on the table next to his chair, ran his hand over his face. He also knew that the girl wasn't a girl anymore. He knew that she had grown up, that she was competent in herself. He also knew that he was the most logical choice, especially given his latest status in the Dark Lords inner circle. The thought of that, his right hand subconsciously rubbed his left forearm, where that cursed Dark Mark was. What life, though, was it for a young woman who has her whole life ahead of her, to be bound for life to an old, nasty, Death Eater? Even if they were to win this war, she would be a pariah in their society. He knew his reputation wasn't the best, he made sure of it because lifestyle demanded it. He had no family, his parents both long dead, and her parents, what of them? They would need to go into hiding. He sighed, trying to think of anyway that this situation could turn out in any way good, for contrary to popular belief, he didn't _hate_ his students. He does care about how they turn out, just his accursed position forces him to act a certain way. True, they annoyed him to no end, especially when they refused to listen to simple instructions, but that didn't mean he wanted them hurt in any manner. He knew that

Albus would talk to her tomorrow, as the law was coming out in a week. They would need to marry, as well as create a long relationship out of thin air. Magic can do many things, but creating an entire relationship, something to fool even the Dark Lord, who will be furious that he had hidden such a thing from him in the first place. He sighed, finished his glass of whiskey, and with one last thoughtful look into the fire, he got up and went to bed. His life, as well as hers, was going to change completely. Hopefully he can bring her out of this war as whole as possible. She was still an innocent girl after all, a girl who was about to be forced into womanhood. With a shake of his head, as if to rid it of the unpleasant thoughts, he went to bed.


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N: Okay, so another chapter up! I don't think I can keep up with the daily updates, but I will try my hardest to do so. As the last chapter, this has no beta yet, so please be kind to my mistakes! I may try to get one for the next chapter or so, but who knows? As always, reviews are very welcome! I love hearing your opinion of my story. And no characters here are mine, alas. They are just on my chessboard for now.**_

Hermione walked into the great hall that morning, and sat down at the table. It was still early, only a handful of students were in there at the moment, but the table was already laden with a number of foods. She grabbed a piece of toast and put some butter and marmalade on it, as well as gathering some fruits and some sausage links onto her plate. As she ate her breakfast, an owl swooped down with a letter attached to its leg. _Hmm, who is writing me this early?_ She thought, as she didn't recognize the owl. She opened the scroll, and read

 _Miss Granger,_

 _Pardon the interruption of your breakfast, but if you could please come see me in my office this morning before classes start, I do have a matter to discuss with you. Please come alone at this time. Password is Acid Pops._

 _Yours truly,_

 _Professor Dumbledore._

She read the note with narrowed eyes. _What could Dumbledore want with me right now?_ She looked at her watch, class started in two hours. She wasn't sure, but wondered if whatever it was had to do with Harry as well, as he actually said to come alone, but that something was off. She couldn't put her finger on it, but something was not right. She had a rather unsettling feeling about this. She sighed, but there was no use sitting her trying to figure out the message in the message. She may have gotten used to his manipulations, but that didn't mean that she could beat him at his game. Not at this moment at least. She sighed as she gathered her books and stuffed them into her bag, she took one last bite of her sausage, a last sip of her tea, grabbed her toast, and made her way out of the Great Hall toward the Headmaster's office.

Deep in thought over the missive, she didn't pay attention when she ran clear into the back of someone. She began to mumble her apologies as she looked at who obstructed her path and realized in apprehension that it was none other than Professor Snape. _Great, exactly what I needed, points taken off before the school day even began._ "Sorry Professor! I-,"

"I do not want to hear your apologies Miss," He looked at who he was talking to, point deduction on the tip of his tongue, when he noticed it was _her_. Why did it have to be her? He then noticed the missive in her hands, and then took note of what direction she was going. So, Albus going to give her the news that she was to marry him now? The old coot certainly didn't waste time, at least not to those who it may matter to lessen the blow. The thought crossed his mind to actually take pity on the girl, but then she needed to learn to keep her faculties with her at all times. Constant vigilance wasn't just Mad-Eye being paranoid, it was a something to keep you alive in war times. So, he plastered on a sneer, "Granger. Do watch where you are going. This is a hall for walking, not mindless wandering. If you wish to wander mindlessly, I suggest you do so in the divination room, as I hardly expect that you would need your mind there. 20 points from Gryffindor for carelessness." And he swept down the hall. He didn't wait to see the anger and humor war across her face.

 _Seriously?_ She thought. Then shook her head clear of that encounter, and made her way to the Headmaster's office. She reached the gargoyle with no more incidents. "Acid Pops," she said, and the gargoyle sprang to life and jumped aside, opening the moving stairs leading the Headmaster's office. At the top of the stairs, she knocked, and when she heard the invitation to enter, she opened the door and went inside, closing the door behind her, as to her it was rather obvious that this was to be a private matter, of some sort.

"Good morning Miss Granger! I hope to find you well? I'm ever so sorry to interrupt your breakfast but this matter couldn't wait."

"No worries, sir. May I ask what is wrong?" She asked a bit worried.

"Please, take a seat Miss Granger." He said, gesturing to the cushioned chair in front of his desk. "Tea?" He offered, pouring himself another cup.

"Yes please, milk, two sugars please." She said, welcoming the caffeine. The headmaster nodded smiling, and made her cup and flicked his hand at the cup, it floated to her. Taking the offered cup, she took a sip, then set it on the desk in front of her. "Now, sir, what is wrong? Is it something to do with the war?"

Albus sighed, as he looked at the young woman in front of him. "Well, my dear, I'm afraid it is about the war, but only indirectly. You see, my dear, the Ministry will be enforcing a new law, The Marriage Act, to be precise. On the face of the law, it is supposed to unite the Pureblood and Muggle-borns to end the war in this front. But, the people who are pushing the law through are in Voldemort's inner circle. Which tells us that this is to get certain Muggle-borns out of the way." He paused to look at her,

"To get me out of the way, is that what you were going to say Professor?" She said, calmly. She knew that it was only a matter of time before Voldemort looked to getting to Harry by other means. She just had hoped that she didn't have to deal with marriage until after her schooling. She knew Ron liked her, as he kept asking her out every so often. She may have harbored feelings for him when she was younger, but then she saw that they had absolutely nothing in common, other than Harry. And that's a healthy relationship right there.

"I'm afraid that is correct. The details of the law are that you will need to marry a pureblood that has petitioned for your hand, and that you are to be with child within two months after the hand-fasting. The husband will retain all rights to his bride,"

The words swam around her head, as she tried to absorb the information. "I have to be with child after two months." She repeated in an almost deadend tone of voice. Then she gave herself a mental shake. "What did you mean that the husband will retain all rights to his bride?" She asked with narrowed eyes.

"Exactly what it says," He replied, "That he makes the decisions. It used to be done hundreds of years ago, but since then witches have gotten their own rights and such. For example, your husband could control how many children you had, or if and where you were to go to school. Where you could work, or even if you could work. He had the ultimate decision power."

"When is this law to go into effect?" She asked, a bit too calmly, as she was desperately trying to keep her hands from shaking in furious anger.

He smiled slightly at her and with a sigh replied, "Two weeks from today." He said. Her eyebrows furrowed, as she took in that information.

"So, obviously, you brought me here to discuss options, not just to tell me the news yourself." She said, "So, Professor, what is the plan?" She asked calmly.

"Well, Miss Granger, the law only effects those who are not already married, and are over the 17 year mark. As of now, that includes you. But, if you were to marry _before_ the law went into effect, as in this week sometime, then the law and its clauses wouldn't affect you." He said, letting that information sink in.

Marry someone this week? She looked at the Headmaster as if he was crazy, which she was seriously thinking he may well be. "You can't be serious? Especially if this law was to basically enslave me to some man, you can't expect Voldemort to actually believe that I had plans to marry anyone _right before_ a major marriage law went into effect."

"Well, there would be some raised eyebrows, but they really can't do anything about something that has already been sealed with the bond of matrimony."

She stayed silent for a bit, thinking over all this information that she got handed. Dumbledore just let her absorb the information, watching her as she sat there deep in thought. He knew the question she will ask, once her mind consumed the information.

"Who would I marry?" She asked, suddenly breaking the silence in the room. A smile played at the edge of his lips, and looking at the Professor, and seeing the smile at the corners of his mouth, she knew he'd been waiting for her to ask that question. With eyes twinkling madly, he looked at her, and replied quite calmly,

"Why, Severus Snape of course."


	3. Chapter 3

_**A/N: Okay, another chapter! Woot! Sorry for the wait, but here is a nice long chapter for you! I'm so thankful to everyone who reviewed! I think I replied to everyone, and if I missed you, I'm sorry! But please leave reviews, they make my heart happy hearing back from you guys and knowing what you think! And as always, this isn't beta'd. And all characters belong to our adoring Queen JKR. No money made here. Enjoy!**_

She was taken aback by his answer, and was about to tell him that he was insane! Professor Snape was exactly that, her professor! She couldn't marry him! Then her logical brain caught up with her, and she sat back in the chair and thought this whole thing over. Albus Dumbledore may be pushing 120, but he was still considered one of the wisest wizards alive. She knew that there was more to this than what met the eye. Protection? She could protect herself if needed. Yes, she knew that most people believed that defensive spells weren't her strongest suit, but that was years ago. She had been taking Tae Kwon Do for the past 7 years, as an old friend of her mum was an instructor in the local gym in her hometown. It wasn't a complete secret, just something that she didn't tell anyone about, mainly because it never came up. No one ever thought to Hermione Granger, brains of the golden trio, anything other than topics relating to books and research, so she kept quiet over it. She worked hard to build this persona, Hermione Granger the resident know-it-all. No one ever suspected that she was capable of much more than just research, homework, and color coded study charts, and that worked perfectly for her.

So, she could see how Dumbledore may see that she needed to be protected, as he most likely didn't know about it. But there was something else…something she was missing. Why Snape? Of all people, why not Kingsley or Harry, or one of the Weasleys? So, she took the bait, "Why Professor Snape?" She asked Dumbledore.

He smiled, eyes twinkling, which made her think that this was more than just the law and protecting her somehow. She wasn't stupid, she knew how manipulative the headmaster can be, but she let it lie for now. "We need you married to someone in the order, someone who can protect you, someone who we can trust. Severus Snape fits this bill, as well as being the Tom's inner circle, he can also protect you from the other Death Eaters that may have wanted Harry Potter's Muggle-born friend," he explained. She looked at him thoughtfully, processing the information. She may be a Gryffindor, but she wasn't called the brains of the group for a reason. She knew that with Dumbledore especially, there was always some other meaning behind his words, the twinkle was always a dead giveaway. But his words did have weight. She knew that with the law going into effect so soon, there wasn't much time to dwell on things.

"When do you need a final decision?" She asked, staring at the edge of the desk in thought. Dumbledore looked over his half-moon glasses at her thoughtfully.

"If I know by the end of today, I can get things in motion and have the marriage take place on Friday," he replied.

She looked up at him. End of today? She looked at her watch, then started. Class had started 2 hours ago! She looked back at him in surprise. They had been talking for over four hours! Dumbledore saw her start and raised his hand to calm her.

"Don't worry Miss Granger, I already sent word to your professors that you would be excused for today. I figured that having a full day without class to think about this would be better for your decision making," He responded. "As well as getting used to the idea of it," he added. She relaxed a little at those words, and looked at her watch again. So it was 10am now, that gave her about 7 hours or so to decide how to throw her life away. Marry in two days to her potions professor, or marry in a month to an unknown person and pop out babies. She knew what the right choice was, but didn't want to admit it. She also didn't want to make a final decision until she at least talked to Professor Snape about this. It involved him as well, and she felt he had just as much a say in this as her. They would be bound together for life, as there were no divorces in the Wizarding world. If there were, the decision would be so much easier, but she wasn't an avid researcher for nothing. In her second year she looked up traditions in the Wizarding world, mainly marriage ones since at the time she was harboring a school girl crush on Lockhart. Oh how foolhardy she was, but she researched them nonetheless, and found that part of the marriage binding process was the sharing of power rite. Without it the marriage was only paper, and not binding, but that also meant that any kind of separation after marriage meant the loss of their magic as well. Which was why marriage wasn't something that anyone went into without absolute certainty that this was their mate for life.

"I'll think it over Professor, and I will let you know tonight after dinner," She told him with a determined nod. He nodded at the young witch before him, and knew that she was planning on talking to Severus about this. He knew she would, so he had paced their meeting to end right when his free period started. He watched her walk out the door, and leaned back in his chair thoughtfully. He knew them both rather well, and knew that they would be suited for each other. Age was really just a number, and with the life expectancy of wizard folk, their age gap wasn't actually uncommon. Maybe frowned upon in some circles, but still common enough. He was confident that this could lead to both their happiness, once this whole war was done with. He just hoped that one certain snarky man would learn to open his heart for once.

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Severus was in his office grading 5th years essays, when a knock came on his door. "Enter," he said, not looking up from his desk as the door opened and someone came in. "What do yo—," he started to say as he looked up and saw who was standing in his doorway. _Great, just what I needed, the Gryffindor princess coming to check out the dungeons. Fan-bloody-tastic._ He sighed as he put his quill down and sat back and gestured to the seat in front of him. She quickly took a seat, and neither spoke for a few minutes. Severus raised an eyebrow, "I presume you have something to discuss with me? Or do you just feel the need to interrupt my work? Contrary to popular belief, Miss Granger, I do actually grade the essays, not just set the auto-quill to work on them," he said dryly.

She shifted a bit, "Yes, Professor, I imagine you most likely know the nature of my visit. I just wanted to get your opinion on the matter before any final decisions are made." She said, relieved that he didn't immediately throw her out of his office upon seeing it was her in the doorway.

"My opinion?" he asked faintly, and let out a humorless laugh. "My opinion would be that this whole idea is ridiculous. I am being forced to marry my student, you being forced to marry an old Death Eater. You'd be better off giving up magic and moving to America. Maybe there the Dark Lord wouldn't have a reach on you, but that is just only a matter of time. This whole situation is lose-lose. But, unfortunately I have little to no say in this matter." He bitterly bit out, then sighed as he reconsidered his words. "But, if it makes it easier, I promise that I will do my best to give you a decent life. I am not a nice man, but I will not intentionally hurt you. I am a man of decent means, being an accomplished Potions Master, I do have some royalties on potion patents that I get. I can give you a rather comfortable life." He told her, as if to reassure her that marrying him wouldn't be the end of the world. _Why reassure her? Shouldn't he try to dissuade her?_

She looked at him as he talked, listening to it from his view. "What about my schooling? I don't believe that I could still be in your class if we are married. I don't want to have to drop potions, I rather enjoy the class," she told him, as if that was the most pressing issue. She knew it wasn't, not in reality, but to Hermione Granger, resident Know-It-All, it was. And that was a persona she needed to keep feeding, at least for now. Some cards are best kept close to the chest.

Snape rolled his eyes, "I'm sure you are more than ready to take your NEWTs. If we marry on Friday, then you would take them on Monday, and I would no longer be your teacher. Satisfied?" He told her snidely. Was schooling really what you wished to discuss with me, Miss Granger? If so, these questions could be answered by the Headmaster," he said rudely.

She looked at him thoughtfully, "No, it was just something that had popped into my head. I just wanted to get your side of this as well," she told him matter-of-factly. "I guess this means we are engaged, Professor." She said rather calmly. _That sentence was rather strange,_ she thought. And it seemed that he thought the same, as he looked slightly uncomfortable, as if he were struggling with something.

"I suppose, since we will be marrying, you might as well call me by my given name when we are alone." He said rather reluctantly.

She smiled slightly, "Only if you return the favor, sir."

He smirked slightly, "Very well, Hermione." Her name slipping off his tongue effortlessly.

"Until Friday, Severus," she responded, and then stood and left the room. He was about to go back to his essays, when he realized that in that short meeting with, now his bride-to-be, he didn't once get any notion of anything she was thinking. As an accomplished Legilimens, that was something very off putting. Now that he thought of it, he couldn't sense anything about her at all. He should have at least sensed her when she came in, but he didn't realize it was her until he saw her. That never happened, why didn't he notice then? It was as if she blocked him and tricked him in believing she was someone else. Someone insignificant that wouldn't set off alarms. _She couldn't be occluding, could she? Where did she learn? The only occlumens that were capable of teaching that level, would be himself or Albus, and Albus never said anything._ He now found himself furiously contemplating every past encounter with the girl, and decided that everyone was the same, and found himself worried. _Who was this gir?_


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N: Yay, another chapter! And this is a very long one! This is to compensate the fact that I am going out of town this weekend, so I'm not going to have a chance to get the next part ready… So, as always, this isn't beta'd, I do not own the characters nor do I make money off this fic. Yadda, Yadda, Yadda. On with the story! Oh, please, please review! I love reading them! They make my heart happy! Thanks!**_

Hermione sighed exasperatingly, "Really, guys, it's not that bad." She had just finished telling Harry and Ron what was going on, and that they were less than pleased was an understatement. They were currently in the ROR, as Hermione thought it prudent to talk about this without the chance of others hearing about it. It was still an hour until dinner, so she thought it best to tell them before she gave her final response to the headmaster. That way no one broke curfew, and she needed them to just stop breaking so many rules all the time. They were just driving her mad. "Professor Snape is an honorable man, and this union will help both of us in terms of the war."

"Binding yourself for life to the Greasy Git of the Dungeons is _not that bad?_ " Ron exclaimed. "Why not marry one of us? You know we'd take care of you Hermione! I would take care of you!" He pleaded with her.

"You're sweet Ron, but really, Voldemort isn't going to stop until I'm married to one of his Death Eaters, so it makes sense to marry me to the one who is actually on our side." She explained quite calmly, though she was starting to get a headache from explaining the same thing over and over again.

"But I thought the whole point of you getting married before the law went into effect was to avoid the law completely?" Harry asked confusedly.

"Well, yes, that is mainly to bypass the pregnancy clause, because I have no notions to be having babies right now. It's a time of war, why would we bring living things who are completely dependent on us into a world where we cannot control the environment around us? With raids, kidnapping, and the like, it's just completely impractical to do so." She expounded on the subject, "But, if I marry anyone other than a Death Eater, one that Voldemort believes to be loyal to him, then they will fight the marriage, and though there is little you can do once a bond is made, there is always killing the husband and making it look like an accident, then I am caught up in the Marriage Act again. Hence why Snape. I don't know about you guys, but I really don't want to have to keep looking over my shoulder every single moment of every single day. Would you really want that for me?" She told them. _Really, is this all that difficult to understand?_ She rubbed her temples. Definitely need some headache reliever once she got to her room.

At her last question, Harry took a great interest at his trainers, whereas Ron looked dumbfounded. "But, 'Mione, I-I" He started, gulped and blurted out, "I love you!"

Hermione looked at him sadly, "Oh Ronald, I think you love the idea of me. But really, think about it, we aren't suited for each other. We fight all the time, there is no way either of us will be happy in marriage to each other. We have no common interests." She calmly explained to him.

"B-b-but," He started.

"No buts Ronald, but I do believe that I explained the reasoning pretty well. It needs to be Snape. Will we be happy? Maybe, maybe not. Will it work? I don't know. Do we have a better chance at survival? Yes, I do believe so. But this is the best chance we have. Now, you guys should get to dinner, I'll meet up with you guys later in the common room. I need to go see Dumbledore." But first that potion; her head was pounding!

And with that, she got left the room, leaving behind two dumbfounded guys sitting in armchairs. "Do you reckon he's got her spelled or under some sort of potion or something?" Ron wondered aloud.

"Really Ron, you've seen her explain problems before, this is her logical side talking. Plus, I don't think a potion or spell would get past Dumbledore for long." Harry reasoned.

"He's a Potions Master Harry! He could have invented a potion that creates these effects, and makes her want to do something crazy like marry _him_!" Ron exclaimed. He knew something had to be going on here, and told Harry as much. Harry just shook his head.

"Look Ron, I don't like it any more than you, but once Hermione has her mind made up, has anyone successfully changed it? No. It just doesn't happen. Hermione does what she wants, and she gets away with it, because she's always right." He sighed, put a hand on his friend's shoulder, "I know you think you love her, but maybe it just wasn't meant to be." He said with a small sad smile. "Plus, weren't you just in here the other week with Susan Bones?" He asked him, trying to get his mind off Hermione.

"Yeah, and Susan's great in all, she's great in the kitchen and the sack, but," he trailed off with a wistful sigh.

"She's not Hermione. I know. But maybe that's a good thing. Like Hermione said, what did you two have in common anyway? You hate research, books, and studying, and she hates flying and quidditch, so what would you guys talk about?" He tried to reason with his red-headed friend.

"We didn't have to talk." He mumbled miserably.

"Really, Ron, there is more to a relationship than just snogging and shagging. Do you really expect Hermione to be okay with just that anyway? Why not go with Susan again. You said she likes to cook, and you love food, to me that's a match made in Avalon." He tried to rationalize. "Come on Ron, let's get to dinner, before the House Elves vanish all the food." He said getting up. The redhead sighed, and stood as well.

"Yeah, maybe you're right Harry, but it doesn't make it feel much better." Ron said miserably.

"Well, let's see how you feel after a couple of chicken legs?" Harry said, trying to tempt his friend.

Ron gave a lopsided smile, "Yeah, alright." And they went down to the Great Hall.

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Hermione got to her room and located the headache reliever and drank down the potion. In an instant her head went from feeling like it was in a vice to feeling free. "Ah," She sighed in relief. She then scorgified the bottle and put it with her other empty ones. She should restock her stores soon, she didn't want to use all of Severus's potions. Plus, she rather enjoyed potion making. It relaxed her at times. _Maybe it was a good thing I'm marrying a Potions Master then._ She thought with a quirk of her lip. She made a mental note of which potions she needed to make and then started towards the Headmasters office. Once she told the gargoyle the password, she made her way up the stairs and knocked on the door. "Come in," came the reply, and she opened the door and went in.

"Hello Headmaster, I've come to tell you my decision," She said walking in, and she found the headmaster filling out forms at his desk.

"Ah, splendid! So, what is your decision my dear?" He asked, his eyes like stars, twinkling so madly they were.

"Professor Snape and I will be getting married on Friday." She said calmly.

"Very good, very good. Will you like me to tell your parents?" Dumbledore asked kindly.

"No, I actually put them in hiding last year, with the war being how it is, I thought it the prudent thing to do. I will fetch them when this whole war is done with." She explained.

Dumbledore was taken aback, "They've been in hiding for a year? My dear, you could have come to me about that, we would have put them in a safe house if you felt the need."

Hermione fought a smile at seeing the great Albus Dumbledore stumbling over his thoughts. _You couldn't have put them in a safe house, as they don't exactly exist._ She thought to herself amused. But she didn't let on what she said. "Headmaster, I just wasn't sure about the safe houses, so I put them in another country with new memories, of which I don't exist, so if I don't make it out of this war," Her voice broke, "They won't be hurt from it." _There, that ought to have sold the farm._

Dumbledore looked shocked. "Well, if you change your mind," he said in a way that basically said this was far from okay, and that he needed to look into this. Hermione smirked inwardly, _look away my dear Headmaster, you will only find what I want you to find._

"I'll let you know," she said earnestly, drying her eyes.

Dumbledore cleared his throat, "Well now, I would like to discuss the wedding particulars, but I think we should wait for Severus. Ah, here he is," And just then the door opened and in swept Professor Snape.

"You called for me Headmast—," He then saw that Hermione was standing by the fireplace. He groaned inwardly. "I presume you want to talk particulars about Friday?" He said emotionlessly.

"Please, sit down you two," he gestured to the cushy chairs in front of his desk. Once the couple was seated, he smiled, "Now, with a bonding ceremony—,"

"I'm sorry to interrupt headmaster, but does there really need to be a ceremony? From what I've read, there only needs to be a mediator, a witness along with the couple to be bonded. Why can't we keep this as low key as possible? If someone asks about it, we can just say we didn't see the need to make things public, and that should be convincing as both the Professor and I are both rather private people in the first place." She reasoned logically.

Albus looked slightly dumbfounded, just for a moment, sat back in his chair thinking over her plan. Severus smirked at that. Being outwitted by a girl. A girl who he didn't know, as recalled. He discretely looked over at her and studied her. She looked the same, and acted the same. He tried to tentatively prod her mind, when her face immediately whipped over to face his, cocked her head to the side and raised an eyebrow, as if to say, 'Yes?' He immediately pulled back and faced Dumbledore again, but not before he caught the small, almost invisible smirk on her lips. _Was she toying with me?_ He didn't have time to think on that as Dumbledore started to speak.

"Yes, I think that could work. I have to admit I don't think I would have thought about that myself. Now, who would you like to witness?" He asked the couple in front of him.

"I don't have anyone in particular for me. I assume you want one of the gruesome twosome?" Severus drawled.

"Well, I don't think Ron will be willing, but Harry may be." Hermione said thoughtfully,

"The-boy-who-lived-to-annoy-me, part of my wedding. Fan-fucking-tastic." Severus bit out snidely.

"Severus," Dumbledore admonished, "You should watch your language in front of your intended."

"Why bother? She's going to be living with me soon enough, she'll hear much worse than 'Fuck'." He said unapologetically.

"It's fine Professor. Being around Ron, I've learned that what Professor Snape says is true, as I have and will continue to hear much worse. But thank you for your concern." She said with a slight smile, as if all this was amusing to her.

"There, you have it. Now, are we done?" Severus said rather rudely. He was in desperate need of a drink.

"Yes, I do believe that is everything. Let's gather here at 8pm Friday. Have Harry join us, would you Hermione?" She nodded her assent. And he clapped his hands together, "Splendid!"

And with that, Snape went to the fireplace, threw in some floo powder, called out his rooms, and disappeared in a whirl of robes.

Hermione was a bit surprised that Severus didn't walk out with her, she was almost certain that he would have tried to drill any information about his prodding her mind, or even the encounter in his office earlier. But then again, her protection may have been pushing against him strongly, though it was only a matter of time. She sighed, not wanting to think about _that_ conversation.

~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S~S

Later that night found Severus working in his private lab on his research, well attempting at least. He sighed and looked at the third smoking mess in his cauldron, and vanished the contents before just giving up with the research altogether for that night. He couldn't sleep because of his interactions with Granger, or whoever that girl was as he wasn't certain that it was the same Head Girl that has been gracing these halls these past seven years, and thought some potion work would help calm his mind, as it usually does, but that does not seem the case. Instead he took to his study, poured himself a rather unhealthy dose of firewhiskey and plopped down in his armchair by the fire, and took a gulp of his drink.

As the liquid burned down his throat, he stared into the fire contemplating on the Granger girl. Who was she? He thought she was the Gryffindor golden girl, resident Know-It-All, hands-in-her-homework-two-weeks-early Hermione Granger, the girl whose hand was permanently attached to the air above her head. But as he truly sat and thought of her, he realized that this is just a persona. Just like his Greasy Git routine, the Great Bat of the Dungeons. Now, he was an arse, he knew it. He never claimed to be a nice person, but he also wasn't naturally a bully. He created a persona, so that he could survive being the double spy. He knew personas, and he just realized that he had been seeing one for who knows how long, and didn't even know. And that bothered him, hence the no sleep. He should go to the headmaster about this, but the Slytherin in him thought it best to watch her first. He was not about to confront her about it either, at least not yet. He was no Gryffindor, he wanted to catch her off guard. But how to do that when they marry in two days? Then again, what better way to catch someone off guard if they are living with you 24/7? But did he want to marry someone who he had no idea who she was? Then again, he barely knew her now, and she didn't know him, so that point was rather moot. No, it was best to wait this one out. She's been doing this for who knows how long, let's see if she can keep it up.

With his mind made up on the matter, he figured he could get some sleep. He glanced at the clock and saw it read 4am, _so three hours of sleep. Marvelous. Those dunderheads are in for a treat tomorrow,_ he thought rather sardonically. And with that thought, he got up and went to bed.

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While Severus was having his epiphany moment down in the dungeons, the middle of the night found Hermione Granger in her Head Girl's room, making use of the time with her auto-quills at work on the essays due in a couple of weeks, as she sat on her bed, with her right leg naked, baring what looked like a metal garter around her thigh. A closer inspection of the object showed that it was a golden asp, with rubies for eyes, wrapped around her thigh as if it were connected to her flesh. Hermione inspected the asp are a moment, then petted it gently on its head, "Lassamque amicus," She said rather lovingly to her asp garter. At first nothing happened, she just kept petting the snake, then the gold scales started to move, as the asp slowly slithered off her thigh, and onto her bed, rearing up and looked at her.

* _I am here my mistress,*_ the snake said directly into her mind.

She smiled lovingly at it, "Shall we begin then?" She asked the snake with a calm countenance, holding out her bared arm, which was riddled with what looked like henna on her upper arm. At her words, the asp hissed then slithered up her arm until it came to her armpit, which it quickly bit into, and she leaned back onto her bed as the snake drank her blood. Once the snake was done, and had slithered down her arm back onto the bed, she ignored the wound in her armpit, but instead began chanting in a low voice, "Tueri sapientia mea fortitudo mea omni tempore," She chanted over and over, as blood slid down her arm, moving in intricate motions that went around her arm sizzling as if burning into her flesh, creating new patterns on her arm. After 7 times of the chant, she stopped, and the wound closed. She looked down at her arm, inspecting the new pattern. "Serpents, that's a bit obvious, don't you think?" She asked the asp, who hissed in response.

* _Mistress knows what is to come, what needs to be done.*_ The Asp told her. She looked at the asp calmly.

"I know, but that doesn't make it easier to do." She sighed resolutely, "You know he will not take it well, at least at first."

The Asp hissed in a manner that sounded as close to a laugh that a snake can get, * _He is a man, they never understand fully. No matter how intelligent they claim they are, they will never understand the intricacies of women, namely you my Mistress.*_

"Well, seeing how I'm supposed to be dead," The Asp hissed violently at those words, "Or not exist, is there a difference?" She sighed, "Since, I'm not supposed to be here to begin with will cause trouble," She grumbled, giving her snake the look of 'Happy now?' and when the Asp nodded, Hermione shook her head slightly and sighed. "This is the first time in centuries that I've been a witch, first time in being British. All of their marriage matters are so bizarre. Why bind your magic to another? What ever happened to finding soulmates and binding souls? That at least lasts over lifetimes. But no one listens to me." She said with what could almost be called a pout, then let out a sigh as if tired of a conversation. "Well, from what I saw from our encounter earlier, I do believe he is starting to see the façade for the mask that it is, I told you he was intelligent, but I do not believe he knows what is behind my persona. I've been playing Hermione Granger for 17 years now, I don't see why I couldn't continue for a little longer? I've rather liked this one, she's brave, extremely smart, friendly, and kindhearted, if not just very young, the youngest one I've had in a long time, but I do believe I've lucked out with this incarnation. Even with the pale skin. I can't even go for a stroll without getting a burn. But still," She said with a slight smile, as if already missing the girl who she just described. "But, we need to end this blasted war. Ugh, I despise wars, nothing but work, work, and more work." She sighed, resting her chin on her palm, as her elbow was resting on her knee. Ponderingly she said, "Hitler was so out of his league that that time it was almost boring, but this Tom Riddle, he may be a bit more of a challenge. But nothing we can't handle, isn't it, my friend?" She reached out and stroked the Asp's head lovingly, Then, with a flick of her wrist, the auto-quills stopped writing, and the parchment rolled up and flew into her schoolbag, then said, "I do believe it's time for bed, my friend, don't you agree?" And as she said those words, the Asp hissed in response and slithered back up her thigh and once in the position she was in before, she turned back into the gold jewelry with ruby eyes, and Hermione climbed into bed, and fell asleep.

 _ **A/N: 'Lassamque amicus' means "Awaken My Friend"**_

' _ **Tueri sapientia mea fortitudo mea omni tempore' means "Protect my wisdom, my strength and**_

 _ **my power for all of time"**_

 _ **At least it does with google translate, so if there is anyone who is proficient in Latin and sees something wrong, I'm sorry! Please let me know, and I'll change it!**_


	5. Chapter 5

_**A/N: Okay, I know, I know, it has been over a week, and I am sorry! As the great prophet John Lennon once said: Life is what happens when you are busy making other plan. So, here is the next chapter! Don't worry, I am not giving up on this story! As always, its not beta'd, the characters don't belong to me, yadda yadda. Reviews are always welcome! Please let me know what you think! Thanks!**_

* * *

Severus's last full day as a single man was, to put simply, agonizingly irritating. He wasn't a man to give in to sentimentality about giving up his bachelorhood. True, if the choice was his to make, he would have easily just sat in his study and drank himself into a drunk stupor, trying to forget what he was about to do with his life. But no one was going to let that slide. Instead, he found himself feeling every ounce of what teaching inevitably means: Babysitting. He scrubbed his face as yet another brat knocked on his office door, only to tell him that Davy was supposed to clean up the bathroom, as this week it was his turn to keep it tidy ("It's what the charts in the common room says, Professor!"), and he was refusing to do so, ("I'm not a house-elf, it's their job to clean. Why should I?") He barked at them about Slytherins don't tattle. The gall of first years. Seriously, who the fuck cares? True, as Head of House, he was there to sort out disagreements, but so were the Prefects. That's why he had them in the first place, to sort out this innate shite.

Then there was the whole debacle in his 4th year class of Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs. Normally this class ran smoothly, but today it seemed it was 'Instructions are Shite Day' and no one had the sense to remind him. Three melted cauldrons, and two mild explosions in one lesson. Fan-fucking-tastic. The only saving grace of the whole day was that he didn't have to see _her_. 7th years didn't have potions on Thursdays, usually one of the best days of his week, since he didn't have to see The-Boy-Who-Annoyed and the Red-Headed Twit. Granger was always a different story, he didn't like her to any extent of the imagination, but he couldn't help but appreciate her mind and readiness to learn, a teacher's dream. Of course his extra-curricular activities allowed him very little wriggle room for fair teaching. He sighed, he did actually enjoy teaching if he were able to do so how he wanted to do it: with careful selection and with dedicated students only. He would love to be able to hand pick his students, and only work with those who actually had the talent the drive to do exceptional things. Pinching the bridge of his nose, as he felt a headache come on, he dug in his desk drawer for a headache remedy, and he threw it back quickly, sighing at the instant relief. He then got to task of catching up with his grading.

Casting a tempus spell, he saw that it was nearing dinner, and he debated about going to dinner or just ordering from the kitchens. As Head of House, he was required to attend meals, but given a decent enough reason, he could get out of a few. He really despised having to attend meals, though if he was remembering correctly, married teachers were allowed to miss dinner and breakfast, as they normally would be spending them with their spouses. _Well, that was one perk to this whole nonsense._ As his mind drifted away from dinner and toward his impending union, his mind settled once again on his bride-to-be. He was very curious indeed that she sensed him that quickly. When he was bored with Albus, he would prod his mind a bit and see how fast he caught on, and it always took him at least a minute. She was instantaneous, and what was more she didn't seem upset at his intrusion, but seemed to find it rather curiously amusing that he was trying to see into her mind. He was tempted to question her on their way out of the Headmaster's office, but he realized it would be better to wait and see what more information he can acquire first before confronting her.

He leaned back in his chair, pondering on their previous encounters, trying to piece information together. She was a skilled occlumens, occluding so that people wouldn't even attempt to look in her mind, as if she were projecting her occluding. But how, or rather where, could a girl her age, muggle-born no less, learn to do that. _He_ didn't even know how to project occluding, he didn't even know it was possible. That aside, their encounter in his office was intriguing as well, as she practically showed him her persona was exactly that: a façade. What he didn't see was what she was hiding behind it. If she wasn't Hermione Granger, what happened to her, and how did anyone not catch the change? _Or was there a change at all?_ His mind started at that revelation. _Who was this woman?_ He was slightly panicked, not about marrying her oddly enough, but about his role. Hermione Granger knew about his spy status, but if she wasn't truly Hermione Granger, then who was it that was privy to that information? He was rather fond of being alive and relatively pain-free, and he liked to keep it that way. He needed to find out who this girl was, and what her intentions toward him were.

* * *

While Severus was having a spectacularly difficult Thursday, Hermione found it oddly vague. Classes went on as usual, and unless you count Harry throwing her worried looks throughout the day, and Ron throwing her glowering looks, everything was rather normal. Hermione wasn't that surprised about Ron's reaction, especially after his proclaimed love for her. Oh, why were men so foolish? After 12,000 years, she still had yet to comprehend the male mind. But Harry, well, yes she could see why he was worried. Though from what she had always known from Harry, he would fell a brotherly protection towards her. She still needed to talk to him about witnessing tomorrow night. She was sure he would agree, though how willingly she was unsure. She needed him to agree, anyone else could be disastrous. She had side-stepped a ceremony for a reason; too many people witnessing what will happen will cause many questions, questions she could not answer to just anybody. Well, if her time in this world has taught her anything, it was how to cover her tracks when needed.

The bell signaling the end of class pulled her out of her reverie, and she gathered her books together, and headed over to Harry, trying to catch up with him.

"Harry!" she called out to him as she caught up with him, grabbing his arm to have him stop. He stopped and turned towards her, a quizzical look on his face. She just gave him her 'we need to talk' face, and guided him towards an empty classroom.

Once inside, she silenced and warded the door, and turned towards him, "I'm getting married tomorrow night." She started to explain. He acted as if he was going to protest, then she gave him another look, which shut his gob with an audible click. "Yes, I know it's soon, sooner than what I had in mind, but none-the-less, it is what it is." She sighed, "Now, I didn't drag you in here to just tell you that, soon it will be common knowledge anyway. No, I need to ask you something," she took a deep breath, "Will you witness my marriage?"

Harry looked at her for a few minutes. "I, uh, what does that entail exactly?" He asked, scratching the back of his head.

Hermione gave him a small smile, "You just have to stand there and watch the marriage take place and sign the certificate saying you were there. Though, you will need to sign with a blood quill. I know they aren't your cup of tea, mine neither, but it is crucial that it is signed in blood in order for the bond to be sealed properly, so no one can contest it."

"It's a blood pact?" He asked a bit startled, realizing a sudden fear of marriage. He needed to really start looking into wizarding customs and traditions.

"Not in a strict sense. Wizarding marriages come in different levels. There's the regular Conubium, or Civil Marriage where it is basically just a piece of paper stating the union of two people. More of a tax break than anything. It is possible to have a separation in the Conubium, but only if it is a child-free marriage. So, once a child is involved, you could acquire a mistress on the side, but you will always be married," she explained. "Then there is the Amor Verus, or True Love, marriage," she continued on, "This is one where you must prove that this is your true love. Your magic is then bound to the other, and you not only gain their magic abilities, but also have a connection like no other. True love is something that is not very common, but isn't exactly uncommon as well. If you are approved and have proven that your intended is your true love, then you are able to go through the ceremony. Note though, that if the test is altered in any way, and your intended is not your true love, the rite and spell used in the ceremony has the opposite effect." She paused, and saw the look of confusion in his eyes, and sighed slightly, "Your magic is ripped from your bodies, leaving you as a muggle. Young couples believing they are in true love becoming broken once the rite started, and once started, it cannot be stopped, nor can it be reversed. It's why it's very hard to get approved for the Amor Verus. Some couples are known for their true love union. Molly and Arthur are one," She paused slightly, "As well as your parents," she added. Harry stayed silent, but she was sure that hearing that information was comforting for him, another piece to his jigsaw past. She continued, "Then there is Tenentur Vita Principium, or Bound by life source. This was used long ago, with arranged marriages, and once the binding is done, only death can part them, but only death not caused by the spouse, so once bound, poison set by their spouse will turn to water, fatal spell and hexes will go astray, and will not hit their target. It was how fathers used to get good matches for their daughters, even if said daughter was unhappy. It hasn't been in use for centuries." She stopped, knowing Harry was putting things together.

"So, you and Snape are getting the Tenentur Vita Principium?" He asked a bit faintly.

"Well, we're certainly not getting the Amor Verus," she chuckled slightly. "Basically, because we as wizardfolk, our magic is our life source, as well as blood, so it is a bonding of magic and blood, and with the only way to end the bond is death. The Ministry can't do anything about it short of trying to kill one of us, which they cannot do without everyone realizing it was them." She said, seeing his eyes conclude the interpretation she wants him to see. It wasn't a lie, she and Snape were getting the Tenentur Vita Principium, and it was a bonding of magic, and blood was involved. Though soulmates are always so difficult to explain to wizardfolk. They think true love and soulmates are the same thing, and though they both have similarities and overlaps, they were indeed different. She sighed internally, she said what she needed in order to get him to do what she needed.

"How do couples prove their true love?" Harry asked, shaking Hermione out of her reverie.

"Hmm? Oh, the magic must be compatible. Basically, when you are in true love, you and your partner's magic will flow together and be able to go through the amor verus iudicio spell, or true love trial. If you and your partner are in true love, the end result in the spell is your love in magic form, which is beauty beyond words. If you and your partner are not, then the spell cannot finish." She explained. Harry nodded his understanding, and was quiet for a few moments. He then looked at her.

"What time tomorrow night?" He asked.

"Eight o'clock," She replied, with an appreciative smile on her face. Then a thought occurred to her, "Though, I think it best to not tell anyone about this until after the binding is done." She paused for a minute, "Even Ron." She said.

Harry nodded, and understood it, "He's not going to be too happy about it." He said with a sigh, knowing that he will have to be the one to play mediator.

"I know you hate being stuck in the middle, Harry, and I am sorry. But I know how rash he can be at times, and if he doesn't know until after, the damage he can ensue will be minimal." She explained. She did care for Ron, as a friend, but if he believed he was in love with her, then that could cause things to spiral out of hand quite quickly.

* * *

Later that evening found her in her room with her homework set to work on itself. She was in the middle of reading another book. She has always had a love for the written word, in all her incarnations. But each incarnation brought new books, new authors, to the table of knowledge, and she devoured it all. Knowledge is power, but only when used properly. Otherwise it can turn evil, and that is where she was brought in, to balance the good and evil, so to speak.

She sighed, and put the book down, deep in thought about tomorrow. She was sure that Albus will see what will happen for what it was, but what to do about it? Should she block it? No, that wouldn't work, the Headmaster would see something amiss there, and would demand answers, ones she couldn't give him, nor could she risk him looking for himself. Should she conceal it? She pondered on that idea. She could conceal it, make it look like a regular binding to all eyes, with the exception of hers and Snape's. Yes, that could work, the wheels in her mind whirling non-stop as she thought through this plan of action.

A warming on her thigh caught her off guard for a moment. She knew that her serpent friend was just warning her to tell Snape the truth, the relevant parts of it anyway. She knew that she should tell him before their wedding night, but then again a sealed deal seemed better, especially since she was rather sure the truth might frighten him off. Marriage was daunting enough, with the binding magic. From what she had learned was that the idea of soulmates to the wizarding folk was something that didn't come around very often, and when it did it wasn't spoken about, as if binding your soul to another was dark magic. She scoffed at the idea. Soul magic was nothing like dark magic. She knew dark magic, she knew it intimately well, even after so many years and so many incarnations, she will never forget the feel of dark magic. Her father was long gone, but his magic still runs deep in her veins.


	6. Chapter 6

_**A/N: Okay, finally, the Wedding is here! Yay! Lol. I was tempted to put in some lemons with their first night, but it was getting rather long as it was, and I wanted to get this posted. So, next chapter will contain some lemony goodness. Don't worry, for those who don't like that sort of thing, I will properly mark it so you can easily skip it.**_ _ **Now, Enjoy! And Please tell me what you think! I love hearing from you, my wonderful readers and followers!**_ _ **There will be mistakes, as I have come to the conclusion that I am posting basically a first draft, mainly to see people's reactions and yadda yadda. So, once this is completed, I will probably edit it and repost it. Just as an FYI.**_

* * *

Thursday was a hellishly long day for Severus, that was for sure, but Friday seemed to do exactly the opposite of what Severus wanted it to do. When he wanted time to pass slowly, what seemed like 5 minutes was really an hour or two, and then when he wanted it to pass quickly, to just get the damn thing over with, what he hoped was a couple of hours, was just 20 minutes. It was enough for him to pull his hair out. Metaphorically of course, he couldn't stand it if he were ever bald. Now he was not a vain person, he knew how he looked, but he also knew that if he were bald, 1: he wouldn't have a curtain of hair to hide his face, and 2: it would just make him look more like a freak. No, yelling at the dunderheads will have to do.

Severus sighed as he sat back in his chair, as his day of classes ended. He only had a half days' worth of classes on Fridays, so as he checked the time, seeing it was only 1pm, he let out an exasperated sigh as he threw his head back. His mind was getting back to trying to figure out this girl he was betrothed to, and this mystery that seemed to be enshrouding her. How could no one notice? He couldn't help but keep thinking. Of all this time, nothing seemed out of the ordinary, then again, that was probably the point. But how long has this been going on? His mind racing through his memory, trying to find hints to anything, yet nothing ever came forward. He needed to figure this out, for the sake of his cover and the war. He knew that he would be punished for marrying the Granger girl, but he wanted to at least make it out alive from that interaction. He knew he should seek her out and get answers before they become bound for life, so he tapped his teacher board on his office wall twice with his wand and called out, "Hermione Granger's schedule," and her schedule appeared before him. Being a head of house brought perks, and seeing any student's schedule was one. It was meant to help set up tutoring with the less mentally endowed students, but the other heads, as well as himself, use it mainly to schedule detention to keep them away from certain students as punishment. He mainly used it to schedule Potter's detentions to be on Gryffindor's quidditch days, as once set at the beginning of the year the quidditch practice shows up on their schedule. He was sure that the students had no idea their clubs and teams they joined ended up showing up on their schedule, but that was truly the beauty of it.

Examining the schedule before him, he saw that she had a classes until dinner, but she had a free period coming up in half an hour, and that she was currently in History of Magic. That being done, he wrote a short missive, charmed it to alert him when it was read and by who, and sent it to one of his second years who had History of Magic next, so he would deliver it to her. He tapped the board once, and the schedules disappeared. No point in having a student find out about that and ruining his fun. He then pulled out a book and waited.

* * *

Hermione was bored. History of Magic was the most boring class there was, and she had to pretend to be alert and take notes. She sighed internally with relief as the bell rung, signaling the end of class. Since she had a free period next, she took her time packing up her bag, as to wait for the Out-The-Door first rush died down. She was just buckling up her bag when the next class began filing in, already looking bored even before the class began. She smirked slightly, knowing that feeling all too well with this class. She trudged toward the door, thinking about going to the library to get some books, she needed something to get her mind not whirling about tonight. As she made to the door, a hand stopped her.

"Hermione Granger?" The boy asked, looking at her. She looked back at him, seeing the green and silver tie, and the small slip of parchment in his hand, she gathered that it was from her one and only fiancé. She only wondered what in Merlin's name he wanted to tell her at this moment. She sighed, and looked at the boy with kind eyes, but with the expression of 'What does he want now?'

"Yes. I take it that Professor Snape is asking you to deliver that missive to me?" She replied to his question. The boy nodded, holding out the piece of parchment. She took it from him, and walked out of the classroom. In the hall, she opened it up and read

 _Miss Granger,_

 _Please come see me immediately, we have some things to discuss before tonight._

She almost sighed in exasperation. The gall of that man. She knew about the whole Heads of House have access to student's schedules, so she knew he knew that she had a free period. True, she wasn't exactly going to be doing anything except reading, but she hoped to get some alone time before tonight, because Merlin knows when she will in the near future. She needed her alone time, to unwind from the day. Hence why she sometimes gave the boys the slip, but mainly she cherished her free periods she got by herself. But she composed herself, and made her way to the dungeons.

She stopped at his office door and knocked.

"Enter," came the reply, so she opened the door and walked in. He was seated at his desk, looking at her as she entered and once the door was closed behind her, he gestured for her to sit down. Once seated, she looked at him expectantly.

"You asked to see me, sir?" She asked, as if she didn't know what this was in reference to. She just wished she could have put if off for just a few more hours. At least then the binding would be done, but ah, c'est la vie.

Snape steepled his fingers as he leaned back in his chair and regarded her. "Yes, I did." He looked at her thoughtfully, "I do believe I gave you permission to use my given name before, only when we were alone of course." He commented.

She gave a soft chuckle, "I guess old habits die hard, s-er Severus." She replied. He gave a smirk at her hiccup.

"Well Hermione," he said, slightly emphasizing her name as it slipped off his tongue coated in his velvet voice, "I feel that there are some matters to discuss before we wed this evening." He said a bit nonchalantly.

"Which matters?" She asked, feigning confusion.

"Matters of exactly who you are is one, and where exactly is Hermione Granger?" He said, nonchalantly, though with an icy undertone.

She was taken aback about that. He thought she was an imposter? Well, he got it somewhat correct, just backwards. She then felt him reach out to her mind. _Oh, he wants to play? He should have learned a little better,_ she thought with an inward smirk. She closed her mind gates so sharply he flinched as if someone had struck him.

"Who the fuck are you?!" He snarled, suddenly standing and looming over his desk at her.

She calmly sat back with her arms crossed and replied, equally calm, "If you are going to be rude and try and see things that, as of now, you have no right in seeing, I don't have inclination to give you any answer at all."

He looked at her with an open expression of confusion, anger, and fear, only to have it disappear as he recomposed himself and sat back down.

"Where did you learn occlumency to that degree?" He asked tentatively, as if trying to get back to the topic at hand.

She tilted her head, wondering what to tell him. "That is a long story, which cannot be told in full without other information first." She took a deep breath, "Some of which would be better explained later," she held up a hand as he opened his mouth to protest, "But I will tell you what is relevant to your concerns." He closed his mouth and gave her look of ' _Please continue.'_ She took another breath, "I _am_ Hermione Granger," she started, taking a pause to gather to words, "in this incarnation of myself that is." She looked at him as that information sunk in. When she didn't make to explain herself further, he gave her a pointed look of ' _Well, don't stop now,'_ and she sighed, "My name is Amunet, I am the Goddess of the Protection of the Human Race." She explained, as if that covered everything.

He looked back at her for a solid 3 minutes, "You're telling me that you are a goddess?" he asked with disbelief clearly evident.

She smiled at him, "The incarnation of one, yes."

"Bullshit. I've never heard of this goddess, and I am rather well read. I have studied the gods and goddesses of all the cultures, Greek/Roman, Norse, Egyptian, American, Christian, Hebrew, Hindi, Buddhism, the many African tribes," He ticked off on each finger, "And yet I have never heard of _you_ " He said scathingly, knowing she was lying on purpose. Goddess indeed!

She just continued to smile as he named the different goddesses. When he was through she replied with the question, "Do you know what Amunet means?"

He looked back at her dumbly for a sec, then caught himself, and racked his brain of meanings. "It's Egyptian for 'the female hidden one'," He replied once he recovered.

"Yes, I was hidden by the other gods and goddesses, because it was my duty to protect the human race, each life spent as a woman to overcome a great evil to spread the world." She explained patiently, as if she were tutoring a first year. He scoffed and looked at her with disbelief, and she knew she had to show him her friend. She opened the bottom of her robes, and lifted her skirt, he then pushed back from his desk,

"What the fuck are you doing?" He exclaimed.

She ignored him, and instead said, "Lassamque amicus," and the Asp on her thigh awoke and slithered from her thigh onto the desk, Severus's eyes wide in confusion and fear.

* _Mistress has told him the truth?*_ The Asp spoke into her mind only.

"Parts of it, my friend. I need you to tell him your truth." She spoke to the serpent, as if Severus wasn't there. As the Asp turned to face Severus, Hermione calmed him, "She will only speak in your mind, but she needs your eye contact, as you don't have a bond with her yet. Please sit back down, she will not harm you." Hermione explained to Severus. He looked at her, suddenly realizing that he had actually gotten out of his chair at her surprise, then looked back at the serpent on his desk uncertainly. The Asp was decently sized, roughly 4 to 5 feet long, a deep amber color, the color of a golden honey. He sat back in his seat slowly, and faced the Asp. The snake raised its head until ruby red eyes met onyx ones, Severus then had the strangest feeling of being legilimenzed by a snake occurred.

 _*You are not sure about my mistress?*_ The Asp asked, looking at him. He just nodded dumbly, still not sure what was going on. He felt quite useless, and that feeling was pissing him off slightly, but he couldn't seem to hone in on that anger, as the Asp seemed to be pushing all his irrelevant feelings aside, at least irrelevant to the snake of course. * _What do you want to know? Think your thoughts to me. She can learn of this conversation at a different time*_ The Asp said, and when Severus raised an eyebrow at that, the Asp replied, * _I have been telling her to tell you this for days now, it's her own fault that she waited this long.*_ Severus smirked at that answer.

* _Very well, who is she?*_ Severus thought to the snake.

* _She is the Goddess Amunet, lady protector of the Human Race. She has incarnated many times, always with a great evil to overthrow* The Asp replied, and he could sense a smirk in its answer._

 _*Yes, she told me all that already snake! What I want to know is if she is telling the truth.*_ He thought aggravatingly at the snake. He hated not being able to detect lies. Even with a seasoned Legilimens or occlumens, he could at least sneak a peek. They didn't call him the best for nothing. Yet with her, it was just blank, but in a way that was unnoticeable until she was gone, and then looking back you realize you couldn't detect anything.

The Asp chuckled slightly, amused at his predicament. * _You will know shortly enough.*_ the snake told him cryptically.

Severus seemed taken aback by that. He was about to demand what it meant, then stopped and thought about it, then it clicked, and he said out loud, "Bonding." He turned to look at her, "I will know at the bonding. But how? Magical bonding doesn't cause links to your mind, not the Tenentur Vita Principium. It just links us together through magic and blood. The mind is still independent between the two." He said with furrowed brows, looking at her suspiciously.

Hermione sighed, and turned to her ophidian friend and gave her a look of 'See what I mean?' and then turned back to Snape looking him in the eye, "I cannot divulge everything at this time, as we are not bonded yet. There is only so much I am allowed to say. You will just have to trust me." She said with beseeching eyes.

He looked at her with distrust and disbelief, "Trust you? I don't even know who the fuck you are. I can't see anything in your mind, and in my experience that means quite the opposite of trusting material."

She look at him with a thoughtful look, "You want to see in my mind? Is that what will comfort you in this case? Then look." She said, inviting him in, which he took without hesitation.

 _He saw her as an infant, maybe a week old, crying in her crib at night. Severus looked at her, and saw just an ordinary child. The child in question was crying loudly, yet no one seemed to make any movement to go and calm her when all of a sudden a light came into the room, making the room shine brighter than the sun on a clear day. He then heard a voice, and at first he thought it was her parents, finally coming to calm the child, but he realized the voice was in fact coming from the light itself. It was speaking in Latin, but he seemed to understand it as well, as if it was being translated right in his own mind._

" _ **My child, you are now born into this new body, to live and be on this Earth once again. A great darkness is coming, a darkness that needs your light. Your companion will help guide you and protect you, and you and your mate will meet once again and give strength to each other, aiding in the battle that is to come. Be strong, my child, for you will go far in this incarnation. Be strong, my dear Amunet."**_

 _The voice then faded out, and as Severus looked in the crib once again, it was to see a calm infant, but with eyes as old as the universe was young, and an amber serpent sleeping protectively over the child._

Severus then left her mind, staring back at her in a look of amazement. His hand reached out to the edge of his desk, to steady himself. The snake hissed softly, as if to say 'You should have just believed her. Men.' Then slid over the desk and back up her mistress's leg.

"Do you believe me now? I promise things will become more clear to you after the ceremony, but unfortunately I cannot say much more about it at this moment." She told him, then checked her watch, realizing that she was running late for her next class. "Bugger, I need to get to class. I will see you later tonight Severus." She said, then reached out and grasped his wrist comfortingly, "It will make sense later," and then, as if in afterthought she said, "I do need you to keep this information to yourself. I am entrusting this to you. Not just for my own safety, but yours and the worlds as well." She told him calmly, but firmly.

He just nodded mutely, still stunned after what he saw. She nodded sharply, then exited his office, making her way to Ancient Runes.

He stood there, staring at the door after she left, his mind whirling nonstop. She was a goddess, the hidden goddess, yet nothing spoke of her anywhere. _Duh, Severus, they hid her, hence the word Hidden._ But then again, something should have come up somewhere. She spoke to him about it, and the voice said that her mate will meet her once again. Once again? If this is another lifetime, then how does the same person see her over time? Apparently he was her mate in this lifetime, but he certainly didn't meet her again, not in another lifetime. He was of the belief that once life was over, that was it. Reincarnation wasn't real, but here she was, reincarnating who knows how many times over. He sighed, knowing that the only way to get answers was to go through with this wedding. The unknown always put him ill at ease, though this situation was slightly different once he thought about it. He just realized that the thought of not going through with this wedding has never really occurred to him, as if the idea of backing out was pushed out of his mind. Even now, as he was actively thinking about it, the idea keeps slipping away. He fell back into his seat heavily, puzzled by the recent encounter with her. He then realized that he couldn't go forward on anything without following her, _But if she thinks I'm going to follow blindly, she's sadly mistaken._ With that thought, he went to his book collection, and after a few minutes of searching picked a book on Egyptian gods and goddesses. Hidden by goddesses or not, Amunet has to be in a book somewhere.

Though, hours later found Severus at his wits end, wondering why he couldn't find anything at all about this goddess. _Hidden does mean hidden, but that doesn't mean that there isn't anything at all about her somewhere. Someone must have come in contact with her at some point._ He thought, as his eye madly skimmed the pages, looking for any information at all on this Amunet. Suddenly, there was a loud chime in his room, he looked up and saw the time floating in midair before him. He sighed, as he flicked his wrist to dismiss his tempus charm alarm, and with another flick of his wrist, the books he had out put themselves away neatly. He then took a steadying breath, threw some floo powder in the fireplace and called out "Headmaster's office."

* * *

As Hermione took a steadying breath, Harry put a comforting hand on her shoulder, and knocked on the headmaster's door. "Come in," came the reply, and they both entered, "Ah! Splendid! Now, Harry, you will stand over here, next to me, and Hermione dear, you will stand here in front of me. Severus, you stand here, opposite Hermione." Dumbledore said, giving out his directions. Professor Snape moved to stand before her, and looked at her with an expressionless face and raised an eyebrow, as if to ask 'Ready?' She nodded, took a deep breath, took hold of his hand and focused on the magic in the room. She whispered "Operientes Verum Magicae," So softly, that Snape wouldn't have noticed if he hadn't been watching her. She then quickly let go of his hand and turned her attention to the Headmaster, as he was rattling on about the marriage itself. He looked at her pointedly, but she decidedly didn't look at him, nor did she divulge anything to him. He was getting very tired very quickly of all this secretive shit, though as if he was one to talk. He mentally shook himself, then thought about her words she just spoke. He wasn't fluent in Latin, but he knew enough to get by, he had to for his Potion's mastery. Operientes meant 'cover the', Verum was 'true' Magicae easily was 'magic'. Cover the true magic? What was she playing with? He mentally sighed and realized he was fighting a losing battle. She said that he's understand soon enough, well once this bonding was done, she had a lot of questions to answer. He smirked slightly at that, ah how the tables had changed.

Dumbledore turned to couple then and said, "Now, face your intended, and grasp their wrist." Hermione and Severus did as they were told, facing one another now, Dumbledore then began to chant the binding ceremony. As he chanted, golden light tendrils wrapped around their hands and wrists, then silver tendrils did the same, only in an opposite direction, wrapping their hands fully. He saw her chest glowing gold and looked a bit shocked, he felt a warm sensation in his chest, and quickly glanced down as saw his chest was glowing silver. This isn't what was supposed to happen, it was just supposed to be a simple ribbon bonding them. He never heard of anything like this happening. But wait, she had cast a spell, 'cover the true magic', was this what she was covering? He looked over to the other two men and saw that his shock was not shared as Dumbledore and Harry acted like anything out of the ordinary was happening. Suddenly, he couldn't think anymore, his mind suddenly burst full of color, golds and silvers danced in his mind, memories he never had before sprinted through his mind, but flashed by before he could even know what they were of. It was such a strange sensation, he didn't even realize that Dumbledore had stopped talking, and was looking at him. He just blinked back at him, and saw that he was handing a silver knife to Harry, which he took then turned to face the couple. He then reached out, as they each handed over their wand hands, and made a small cut on each of their palms, all the while Dumbledore chanting again the ceremonial bonding chant. The couple took hold of the other's cut hands, the blood meeting the other, and as soon as the blood touched the other's a bright light enveloped them. He heard a strange singing almost, as if the light were blessing them, and he suddenly felt at peace. He didn't even know how or why, and had no time to question anything, as the light left as quickly as it came, but he felt harmony, and knew not to fret over the issues at this moment. Answers will come later. His face felt strange, and with a quick touch he noticed that tears had fell from his eyes. Startled, he looked over to his bride, and saw a peaceful smile on her face, and he felt reassured. No one could see any of this. Why should that reassure him though? He didn't have time to mull over these happenings, as he heard the Headmaster clear his throat slightly, he turned to him and saw he was holding out a quill, needing him to sign the marriage certificate. He numbly took it and signed his spiky signature on the dotted line. Hermione followed his lead and signed her feathery signature on the line under his.

"I now pronounce you Wizard and Wife. You may now kiss your bride." Dumbledore concluded, gesturing toward Hermione. Severus then took a half step forward, and what he planned on being a peck on the lips, just to appease the magic, ended up being a rather passionate kiss, he felt like he was pouring his soul and being into that kiss, and she returned it equally. Neither saw Harry's uncomfortableness nor Dumbledore's eyes twinkling madly.


End file.
